Beyond Here and Over There
by FirstmateSwan
Summary: In the Enchanted Forrest, they'd been happy. They'd been a family. But with the evil curse hitting 28 years later than expected, circumstances have changed. Emma and Killian send Henry through the wardrobe, for him to save them all.
1. Chapter 1

The curse was coming, and there was no stopping it. Nothing they could do would change the inevitable. Snow White and Prince Charming had searched every day since the day the Evil Queen had interrupted their marriage. That was twenty eight years ago, much has happened since then.

They have been at war with Regina for as long as Emma can remember, even longer. Growing up was hard, her parents never _allowed_ her to leave the castle. Though that never stopped her from an excursion every so often. A night galavanting in the woods, or watching the moon rise over the ocean down at the port. Sometimes when her parents were in court, she would be able to get away and explore their kingdom during day hours. The world came to life when the sun was up, and there was nothing like it.

During one of her day time adventures, during her eighteenth year, she'd made her way into a pub that was crawling with pirates. She'd never seen pirates before, so curiosity got the best of her. She had sat down and ordered her favorite meal from Granny, closely watching the pirates at the other side of the pub. They were rowdy and messy, proud and free.

Across the pub, a pirates curiosity also got the best of him. He had heard much of this land, but never of the fact that it held the most beautiful woman he'd seen in many years. Long blonde hair, bright eyes, staring him down without an ounce of fear. He motioned for her to come with his hook and with that, their fate was sealed. With one motion of his hook, their destiny was forever set in stone. They were no longer a Princess and a Pirate. They were a unit, undivisable.

Over the next two years, Killian sailed between the lands, always coming back to see her. Everytime he saw her, it was like the first time all over again. They met in secret, she told her parents that she was touring the kingdoms, now as a crowned princess, which was true. He would show her the world before bringing her home once again. Sailing the seas, exploring the lands, showing her cultures she may have never seen otherwise.

Until one night, they were docked to bring Emma back home to her parents, when he dropped to his knee and asked for her hand in marriage.

"Don't joke around, Killian!" She said, smiling brightly at him, offering him her hand to stand back up. She would marry him in an instance if given the chance, but she knew Killian well. He was married to the sea, his life was this ship, and her life had been planned since the day she was born. Her home was her kingdom, and she was married to her people.

"Who on Earth says I'm joking, Love?" Killian said, searching deep in her eyes. He held out a ring toward her, once of sea glass and silver. Worthy of her? Maybe not, but it was the most valuable thing he held. It was once his Mother's.

"You're serious?" Emma asked, stepping back, her expression had gone from joking and light to shock.

"Emma, will you marry me?"

Silence hung around them, she never said a word. Only smiled and offered him her left hand. He slipped the ring on her third finger and kissed her with every ounce of soul in him.

There path was difficult and long. Her father wanted to imprison Killian for piracy, Emma wanted to step down as the heir to the throne, the Evil Queen was attacking villages, but when Emma became pregnant, things started to change in the kingdom. Regina disappeared, her father finally accepted her wishes and they were to be married. She remained the heir to the throne, but as she aged, she grew to appreciate the responsibility.

They had everything they wanted for eight years. Killian had rejoined the Royal Navy, carrying the Charming flag with him. Emma gave birth to a healthy boy named Henry. They were happy.

When word of the curse came to the kingdom, it was nearly too late. The wardrobe was completed only hours before the curse hit. Inside the castle had turned to chaos. People were terrified, crying, running, fighting. Regina's soldiers were fighting to get in, their time was running out.

"We have to send him, we have to keep him safe!" Killian shouted, desperate.

"I refuse to send him there, all alone! If he stays with us, at least we'll be together!" Emma cried out, practically pulling out her golden hair.

"Cursed, Emma! We won't be together, we won't even know each other! He could find us, he would bring us back together!" Killian countered, fear in his voice. This was their only chance at being a family, by sending their son to another land.

"But at least he'd be safe." Emma said quietly, defeated. She remembered when she first held Henry all those years ago, she'd promised him she would always keep him safe. Now she had to break that promise.

"He'd never be safe under the curse, Emma. None of us will be. We'll all be under the Evil Queens thumb, we won't be happy. We both want the best for him." Killian said, putting his hand over hers.

Without thinking, they were walking in sync to Henry's room where he was sleeping. He was so peaceful, oblivious to what was happening around them. The world was falling apart around them, and waking him would change his reality forever.

Emma placed a hand on her sons cheek, cupping it in her palm as she held back her emotions. She could feel the weight of Killian's hand on her shoulder, but all of her was numb. This may be the last time she ever touches her son.

"Henry, you've got to wake up," Emma said, her voice was stony. Her son stirred, giving his parents a bright smile.

"Morning," He said sleepily, though it was still the middle of the night.

"Kid, you've got to get up. Something's happened and we need to get you to safety," Emma said, trying to stay reassuring, bottling herself up. Henry was sitting upright within moments, shock was written across his face.

Kilian scooped his arms around Henry and hauled him out of bed, with Emma close behind. The halls were littered, things all over the floor, blood, weapons. As Killian carried their eight year old son over his shoulder, Emma picked up a spare sword to protect them.

The halls twisted and turned, all leading to the wardrobe. With every step, they grew closer to their goal, but more obstacles were in their way. Regina's men had made their way into the castle.

They turned down the hall were the wardrobe was located and were faced with six soldiers. All of them turned to face them, knowing their end goal. Terror clouded Emma's mind, the only thing she could think about was saving her family.

Emma shoved the sword's hilt into Killian's hand, "Save our son."

Killian's couldn't get a word in before Emma launched into an attack against the soldiers, using her magic. The light was almost blinding, giving Killian his chance. Without a second thought, he kicked in the door to the room. The wardrobe was right in front of them, now all he had to do was let go of his son.

His limbs felt numb as he pulled open the wardrobe door and set Henry inside. Henry fit inside perfectly, though he was limp and teary eyed. Not a word had escaped his mouth, he only stared at Killian with big eyes filled with fear.

"It's your turn to be the hero, Henry. I don't know when you'll see us again, but you have to break the curse. We're doing this to give you your best chance. Your Mother and I, we love you. We'll see you again, I promise." Killian said confidently, though the confidence was false, but Henry didn't need to know that.

"Don't make me go," Henry said, his voice was small.

Outside the room, he heard Emma scream, and out of instinct he slammed the wardrobe door to keep Henry safe. The sound of magic sucking Henry out of this world made Killian feel ill, but he had to get to Emma. Their son was safe, now they had to make it out of this alive.

On the floor of the hall, Emma was sprawled out, black sludge leaking from a wound in her chest. Dark magic. Standing above her was the Evil Queen.

"What have you done?" Killian shouted, dropping down to Emma, ignoring the queen. Emma's skin was pale and clammy, her features distorted in pain, but she was smiling.

"She's cursed. When we reach our new home, she'll be broken. She won't be able to love anyone." Regina said gleefully.

"You saved him." She said, lacing her fingers in Killian's, ignoring everything Regina said. He used his hook to push her long her out of her face. If what the Evil Queen said was true, the curse could never be broken. They'd never be a family again.

"Touching, really. But that doesn't matter. Not now. You won't even remember he was your son when I'm done," Regina said darkly, not even trying to contain her laughter.

The walls around them starting ripping off, surrounding them in wind and evil magic.

"Where are we going?" Killian shouted over the whipping air and debris. He pulled Emma close to him, she was silent, and he didn't want to contemplate what that meant.

 _That he'd failed._

"Somewhere terrible." Regina laughed, looking happier than he'd ever seen her.

The dark magic swallowed them, and the life they'd all known was forever gone.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks for the support on Chapter 1! This curse isn't a photocopy of season 1's curse. There are little things changed, and some huge things. Sometimes living in the dark isn't nearly as painful as living with glimpses of light. At least in the dark, you're not living with the pain of knowing there was a light and you can't bring it back.**

Six years passed since Henry left the enchanted forest, but he was no closer to breaking the curse than the day he landed in The Land Without Magic. He was put in what this place called foster care, being moved constantly between different families. None of them compared to his own family. No woman smiled quite as bright, and no man held him quite as tight.

But today, his foster Mother had told him to pack his bags, because he was being adopted. All of his belongings fit in his bag, it helped that the only thing he cared about in this world hung around his neck. It was a piece of silver on a long leather cord, the silver was engraved with a Swan and Hook. His parents had given it to him when he was very young, and he never took it off.

His social worker picked him up from the foster home early that morning, and they'd been driving for hours. Tall buildings and shops were replaced with forests and streams. Henry's leg had fallen asleep somewhere between hour two and three.

Up ahead, they could see a woman standing next to a sign that read "Welcome to Storybrooke." The closer they got to her, the more dread seeped into Henry. When the car came to a stop, he could tell this was it.

The social worker motioned for Henry to get out of the car, but every part of him was screaming the opposite.

"This is Regina, she's the one adopting you." His social worker said, sounding neutral.

" _Lad, we're trying to protect you, Regina is evil." Killian said, trying to reason with Henry. They felt terrible about what they were doing, limiting his access to the outside world. He could leave the castle whenever he liked, but he had to be with an adult. Things weren't always like this, he could remember the days where he could go out and sit by the pond all day and no one would bother him. Now with Regina attacking their kingdom left and right, they couldn't be too careful._

"This is real." Henry said, breathless. If Regina was here, then his parents must be here as well.

"Of course it is, Henry. I'm your Mother now." Regina said with a bright smile, but Henry could see past the shiny white teeth. There was darkness in her and he refused to give in. He would save his parents.

"This is the sheriff's office, you've reached Sheriff Swan, how can I help you?" Emma asked the caller, leaning back in her chair. Storybrooke wasn't exactly exciting, small town life tended not to be. She could only guess it was one of her five most frequent flyers. None of them sounded appealing this morning.

"It's Ruby, we've got a code rum, backup is needed." Ruby huffed into the phone, and you could hear Granny shouting in the background over the phone. That woman always hated when the drunkards came into the diner during the morning rush. They were hard to control and took up valuable space.

Emma couldn't help but roll her eyes. Of course he was at it again. Killian Jones, the harbour master, has always been good at getting into trouble. Give him a bottle of rum and he'll wallow all day. They even have his face posted in every establishment that serves alcohol. Emma can't fathom where he's getting the rum from at this point, but every once and awhile, Killian surfaces drunk and almost always talking nonsense. Thankfully once he sobers up, the rambling ends and Emma sends him on his way.

"I'll be right there, if you can, fill him up with some coffee. I'll cover the tab." Emma sighed.

"Can do, Emma." Ruby agreed, letting the line go dead. On the way out the station door, she grabbed her leather jacket and prepared herself for another code rum.

Killian slumped in one of the booths at Granny's, ignoring the worried looks he was getting from Archie. The guy always wanted to fix him, but Killian felt he was just fine. Well, he wasn't fine, but he didn't have a drinking problem. He had a memory problem.

Every day, Killian woke up in Storybrooke, and most nights that's where he stayed. But every so often, he'd find his dreams taking him somewhere else. Almost like a past life that was breaking barriers. In that life, Killian had been happy. In real life, Killian was alone, and there was no happiness in that.

"Here's some coffee, the Sheriff is on her way. I can get you something to eat to bring with you, because it looks like your day will be spent in the station." Ruby said, looking sympathetic.

"I'm alright, but thank you for the coffee." Killian said with a lack of emotion. He was exhausted, he couldn't tell if it was from the rum, or the fact that his dreams woke him at three in the morning.

This time, he'd woken from a happy dream. Those were always the hardest. Being ripped from a pleasant false reality and set back into the real world always messed with his head. Rum at least stopped him from remembering. The dream left a smell burned into his nose, something that he could never quite place. Every breath made him feel like he was at home, comfortable and safe. Whenever he closed his eyes, he saw streaks of gold and green. He could hear laughter bouncing off the walls, and when he opened his eyes, he saw nothing. The dreams were a cruel reminder that he was alone.

The bell over the door rang as Emma entered the diner. She was visibly disgruntled, when she looked over to Killian. He was resigned to his fate, it wasn't like spending the day with Emma Swan was a severe punishment. If anything, it was enjoyable. Though it was obvious that she felt differently. Sometimes, Killian will intentionally get himself dragged in, just to spend a night with someone. Emma was the best choice, among the Storybrooke police force.

Emma placed money on the counter for Ruby before attempting to even speak to Killian.

"Can you walk to the station on your own or do I need to get a wheelbarrow?"

Killian contemplated for a moment. The walk to the station wouldn't be horrible, but he wasn't sure he could trust his legs at the moment. He felt like he was at sea, despite the solid ground beneath him.

Emma rolled her eyes, and grabbed around his bicep, "I wasn't being serious, get your ass up, Jones."

"Alright, take me away, Sherriff. It's not like I've got anything better to do," Killian said, his eyes were droopy, barely open. But that didn't stop him from seeing the brown haired boy passing the diner alongside the mayor.

Killian looked to Emma, who still looked annoyed and bitter, but in that moment he could see another side to her. Almost heavenly. He looked back to the boy, the boy from his dreams was here.

"Henry?" Killian whispered, before vomiting on Emma's shoes.


End file.
